Trump touts 'great decision' to deploy National Guard to Los Angeles

President Donald Trump on Monday stood by his decision to deploy the National Guard to Los Angeles amid ongoing riots against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), saying the city would have been destroyed had he not done so.

"We made a great decision in sending the National Guard to deal with the violent, instigated riots in California," Trump posted on Truth Social. "If we had not done so, Los Angeles would have been completely obliterated."

Riots broke out over the weekend as opposition to immigration enforcement efforts boiled over, with video footage showing demonstrators wielding Mexican flags, clashing violently with law enforcement, and torching vehicles.

"The very incompetent “Governor,”  Gavin Newscum, and “Mayor,” Karen Bass, should be saying, 'THANK YOU, PRESIDENT TRUMP, YOU ARE SO WONDERFUL. WE WOULD BE NOTHING WITHOUT YOU, SIR,'" Trump added. "Instead, they choose to lie to the People of California and America by saying that we weren’t needed, and that these are 'peaceful protests.'"

"Just one look at the pictures and videos of the Violence and Destruction tells you all you have to know. We will always do what is needed to keep our Citizens SAFE, so we can, together, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!" he concluded.